Beyond Political Literacy: From Conscientization to Transformative Praxis

Author(s): Graham Hingangaroa Smith

Source: Counterpoints , 2005, Vol. 275, What Difference Does Research Make and for
Whom? (2005), pp. 29-42
Published by: Peter Lang AG

Stable URL: https://www.jstor.org/stable/42978775

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Counterpoints

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3 Beyond Political Literacy: From
Conscientization to Transformative Praxis

Graham Hingangaroa Smith

The market-led reforms of the 1 980s and the subsequent rise in emphasis on
"global markets" have had a detrimental impact on indigenous peoples and
communities, worldwide. This chapter examines some of the implications of
the expansion of free-market economics by looking at the Mäori experience
within the New Zealand context and in particular how this new economic
formation of colonization has been enabled through and as a result of
education and schooling. What is significant in looking at the New Zealand
case study is how Mäori (the indigenous minority population) have actively
resisted and proactively transformed detrimental aspects of the economic
reforms. In this sense, this chapter examines the way in which Mäori have
responded to these new formations of colonization that are being forged at
the intersection of two distinct colonizing imperatives - cultural oppression
and economic exploitation.
This chapter goes beyond merely describing new forms of colonization
to focusing on an innovative Mäori resistance developed from within Mäori
communities by what may be described as the theory and practice of
Kaupapa Mäori (Mäori philosophy and praxis). Further, it focuses on more
precisely understanding the change potential of Kaupapa Mäori theory and
praxis and uses these understandings to inform and expand the
transformative potential within other indigenous contexts. It is concluded
that we need to move beyond merely engaging in conscientization,
decolonization, and political literacy initiatives to focus on transformative
action and outcomes. In this sense, this chapter calls for the need to advance
Mäori and indigenous peoples beyond conscientizing activities to the more
important task of transformative praxis.

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30 Graham Hingangaroa Smith

Introduction

This chapter reflects on innovative responses within Mäori education and

schooling in New Zealand since the 1980s. Education and schooling are
considered crucial sites of struggle for the redevelopment of Mäori in the
face of widespread high and disproportionate levels of socioeconomic
disadvantage. For the most part, such disadvantage has been both produced
and reproduced within a context of unequal power positioning between
"dominant Pakehä " (non-Mäori) and "subordinate(d) Mäori" relations.
Here 1 describe critical circumstances that led Mäori in New Zealand to
develop their own theories for transforming education and schooling. This
particular mode of indigenous theorizing has been labeled Kaupapa Mäori
theory. It is important to understand the evolution of Kaupapa Mäori theory
within a process of praxis. Kaupapa Mäori as an educational resistance
strategy has grown out of an ongoing struggle that occurred both within
Mäori communities and Pakeha-dominant institutional contexts. The notion
of struggle is important in the overall development of Kaupapa Mäori theory
in that it connotes the significance of praxis in making and remaking this
theory. In this sense, struggle has helped to shape the structure, thinking,
commitment and the political conscientization of Mäori with regard to the
critical issues and understandings that needed to occur in order to make the
theoretical components both robust and effective. This formative process of
praxis or critical reflection and (re)development is very apparent within the
research work of scholars and the emergent writings of Mäori master's and
doctoral students from within the School of Education at the University of
Auckland. More recently there has been a burgeoning of both literature and
practical activity based on Kaupapa Mäori aspects emerging from other
University sites, Mäori researchers and community interest groups across
New Zealand.
The intention is not to uncritically export the Kaupapa Mäori theory and
praxis model onto other indigenous communities and contexts. One of the
important principles argued around Kaupapa Mäori theory is that the context
in which it is being used is significant and that such theorizing needs to
evolve from and interrelate with the specific cultural context within which it
is to be applied. What may be useful for other indigenous communities and
groups, however, are insights into the processes, experiences and
understandings related to the development of Mäori theorizing as an
instrument for conscientization, resistance and transformation.
An important emphasis in this work is placed on developing
understandings of the processes of transformation itself. Thus, in order for
change to occur and to be effective, there is a need to know more precisely

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 Beyond Political Literacy 3 1

the key transformative elements within any given strategy. We ought to

know more accurately for example, how and why communities buy in to a
transformative process; "what counts as transformation," how we know that
transformation has actually taken place and whether or not the
transformation is truly beneficial or not. Thus, the significant need here is to
move beyond political literacy policies to also emphasize outcomes of
change through transformative praxis.

The Maori Context

The Mäori are a minority population within the very land of which they are
the original inhabitants. Despite efforts to resist the erosion of their
knowledge, language and culture, Mäori have been significantly colonized
and assimilated by the dominant Pakeha society. Within education and
schooling Mäori continue to experience high and disproportionate levels of
crisis and disadvantage. For example, in 1996, 42.6% of Mäori males left
school with no formal qualifications (35.3% of Mäori females); this is
compared to 16.9% of non-Mäori males (12.2% non-Mäori females).
Furthermore, since 1992 the gap between Mäori and non-Mäori has been
widening.
The New Zealand context is made even more interesting due to the
government launching headlong into neo-liberal economic reform in the
1980s. Many of these free-market reforms were embedded within the
education and schooling structures, and they have arguably made Mäori even
more vulnerable to the colonizing imperatives within the education system.
They have been critically described as representing "new formations of
colonization" (Smith, 1997). Although 1 do not wish to go into depth on this
point, in some areas there is a strong correlation between the worsening
statistics related to Mäori performance in education and the insertion and
impact of the neo-liberal education reforms. In this view, it is argued that the
economic reforms have enhanced the intersection of economic exploitation
and cultural oppression.
For those unfamiliar with New Zealand, the following list of
demographic features gives a quick overview of the Mäori situation:

• The population is currently about 4 million people: Mäori people

make up 1 5% of the total population.
• Mäori were first to systematically inhabit the islands of NZ. Mäori
are the worst affected group with respect to crisis statistics in most
social indices, including health, education, wealth, etc.

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32 Graham Hingangaroa Smith

• It is said that the first European explorers to discover NZ were Abel

Tasman (1642) and Captain James Cook (1769).
• The British began to settle in NZ around the 1 800s.
• In 1840 the Treaty of Waitangi between the Crown of England and
Mäori tribes of NZ was signed and formally established British
colonial presence.
• The church and the education system have been significant agencies
for cultural assimilation.

The Economic Context

To understand the rise of Mäori political consciousness and critical

developments in education it is important to appreciate the economic context
that stimulated both resistance and transformative action. In particular one
needs to understand the history of economic reform developed in New
Zealand since the 1 980s. This restructuring of the economy marked a shift
from a welfare state orientation to a free-market one. More important
perhaps was that New Zealand, once regarded as one of the leading examples
of a successful welfare state economy, was moving to reposition itself as a
champion of the neo-liberal approach. The ease with which this economic
redirection was able to occur was aided by a number of factors. For example,
New Zealand is a relatively small-scale economy; it is an island state and is
subsequently geographically isolated with clearly defined ocean borders, and
finally, and perhaps more importantly, New Zealand had a new Labour
(ostensibly socialist oriented) government who were willing to implement
the radical reforms necessary.
The indigenous Mäori population of New Zealand provides a particularly
interesting case study to observe and to understand the development of a
theoretically informed resistance to the new formations of colonization
embedded in the neo-liberal restructuring of education and schooling. For
example, a key strategy was the construction of new hegemonies around
market notions such as "freedom of the individual," "consumer choice," "the
autonomous chooser," "user pays," "competition," "accountability,"
"standards," "horizontal equity," "meritocracy," "co-opted democracy" and
"economic management" (rather than economic policy). The implicit values
embedded within this form of restructuring did not simply reinforce and
support dominant Pakeha cultural values, behaviors and thinking. They went
further; they provided impetus to marginalize, demean, derogate and
subjugate Mäori people and their cultural preferences. Thus, Mäori cultural
values, which emphasize collective (e.g., tribe, extended family,
relationships, reciprocity, sharing, etc.) rather than individual (e.g.

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 Beyond Political Literacy 33

responsibility, choice, rights, ownership, wealth, economics), are constructed

as the "other," "oppositional" and "contradictory." Elsewhere it has been
argued that this narrow, culturally captured form of economics, in its
emphasis on processes of commodification and privatization, can be
interpreted as "new formations of colonization" (Smith, 1997).

The Rise of Alternative Forms of Mäori Education

The indigenous population of New Zealand has developed interesting

educational and schooling intervention strategies following their pre-school
immersion model (Te Kohanga Reo , in 1982). The growth of this and other
Mäori education resistance initiatives in the 1980s represented a revolution
within Maori education. These resistance initiatives responded to the new
economic formations of colonization in that they formed counter hegemonies
and practices that challenged the commodification impetus of the neo-liberal
economic context. The essence of the 1 982 revolution is summarized in the
following comments:

• In the 1980s Mäori took more control over the key decision-making
and organization of their own education and schooling through
various alternative education initiatives.
• During this time Mäori became increasingly proactive in taking
action against the educational and language crises themselves.
• These actions assisted increased numbers of Mäori in becoming
politically conscientized and involved in political action.
• Mäori developed a vision and plan of action related to language
recovery and revitalization that attracted the buy-in from large
sections of their community.
• During the struggle for Mäori language revitalization, more and
more Mäori developed a critical analysis of the shortcomings of the
existing system, and the prevailing social context maintained by
dominant Pakeha power relations.
• Mäori individuals and groups developed a theoretical dimension to
the struggle to reclaim language and schooling, called Kaupapa
Mäori.
• An important point is that many Mäori were prepared to "vote with
their feet" and go outside of the existing schooling structures to have
their schooling and educational needs met within alternative
structures. This caused a legitimacy crisis for state schooling that led
to a settlement, with the state incorporating and funding the new
Mäori schools.

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34 Graham Hingangaroa Smith

• There are now seventy-plus state funded Kura Kaupapa Mäori

primary schools in New Zealand that teach through the medium of
Mäori language.
• The Kaupapa Mäori methodology and theory are now being used to
make change for Mäori in other sectors.

Since 1982, Mäori have been engaged in a number of educational and

schooling interventions that attempt, firstly, to revitalize Mäori language,
knowledge and culture, and secondly, to overcome a number of learning crises
related to educational and schooling underachievement. As a consequence of
the negative, monocultural experiences endured by many Mäori in and through
schooling, communities developed a series of Mäori immersion schooling
initiatives. These have been initiated at the pre-school (Te Kohanga Reo),
primary (Kura Kaupapa Mäori), secondary {Te Kura Tuarua ) and tertiary
school levels ( Waananga ) in an attempt to respond to the twin concerns
outlined above. These resistance initiatives grew out of many years of struggle
and frustration as increased numbers of Mäori withdrew from mainstream state
schooling options. These initiatives were heavily politicized and often became
embroiled in charges from disaffected Pakeha as being "separatist" and
"cultural retrenchment" movements.
A major development at this time was that Mäori communities formed a
substantial critique (in that they became politically consci entized) of the
continued failure of the existing system, despite ostensibly well-intended policy
reform over the years to change these negative outcomes. Furthermore, Mäori
parents grew increasingly conscientized about structural impediments to their
education aspirations. They disproportionately experienced economic
marginalization in manifest ways and were a highly visible majority of those
who were "left behind" in the reform processes. That is, more Mäori began to
penetrate the hegemonies that held dominant Pakeha state interests, including
education and schooling, in place. For example, Mäori critically engaged the
selected curriculum, the control over funding and resources, the manipulation of
democratic process, the mono-cultural management and administrative
structures and so on. In this process of engagement, Mäori parents became
more critically aware of structural barriers and constraints that underpinned the
system's inability and reluctance to deliver on their aspirations. These critical
penetrations of prevailing hegemony gave impetus to the alternative schooling
and education resistance initiatives taken up by Mäori. Paulo Freire's (1972)
notion that the oppressed must also free themselves and that the oppressor alone
cannot free the oppressed has meaning here. Some of the fundamental
intervention elements that are embedded across all of these Mäori resistance

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 Beyond Political Literacy 35

initiatives have been analyzed and discussed in more detail elsewhere by the
author (see Smith, 1 997).
Thus the new formations of colonization that are forged at the intersection
of cultural oppression and economic exploitation required new resistance
strategies. In this sense the real revolution of the 1980s was not so much the
language revitalization programs (although these are important in their own
right), but the revolution in Mäori critical thinking and the realization by Mäori
that they could make change for themselves. While this has been generally
referred to as the Kaupapa Mäori revolution, more recently (in recognition of its
powerful ability to mobilize Mäori community resistance and to develop
transformation) it has been more definitively described as Kaupapa Mäori
Theory and Transformative Praxis.

Kaupapa Maori Theory

In this next section I examine the set of transformative elements that are
common to all of these Mäori alternative education and schooling initiatives.
That is, the key intervention elements that are consistently found within these
Mäori resistance initiatives from pre-school to tertiary institutions are
identified as a core set of change factors. In identifying these common
intervention elements, Mäori are able to make informed generalizations
about developing successful transformative actions that have the potential to
be more widely applied across other societal contexts and other indigenous
situations. One of the critical elements that ought to be understood here
relates to the renewed commitment of Mäori adults and parents to use the
potential of education to make a positive difference. This change of attitude
to schooling and education is a major turnaround for many Mäori parents to
reinvest in education and schooling despite their own stories of hurt and
humiliation from their own schooling encounters. That is, many of these
same parents harbored misgivings, fears and resistance to dominant/ Pakeha/
state schooling as a result of their own negative experiences.
The following six principles are considered to be the crucial change factors
in Kaupapa Mäori praxis. They are variously referred to in the literature as
Kaupapa Mäori (Mäori philosophy, world-view and cultural principles),
Kaupapa Mäori praxis and Kaupapa Mäori Theory. The key elements are
summarized here:

1 . The principle of self-determination or relative autonomy : The issue

is the need by Mäori to have increased control over their own lives
and their cultural well-being. This factor has made gains within the
kaupapa of Mäori schools given that these schools have been

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36 Graham Hingangaroa Smith

organized by Mäori teachers and decision-makers. Greater autonomy

over key decision-making in schooling has been attained, for
example, in regard to administration, curriculum, pedagogy and
Mäori cultural aspirations. A major point is that because Mäori
people are in charge of key decision-making, they are able to make
choices and decisions that reflect their cultural, political, economic
and social preferences. Furthermore, when Mäori make decisions for
themselves, the buy-in and commitment to make the ideas work are
more certain and assured.
2. The principle of validating and legitimating cultural aspirations and
identity. In Kura Kaupapa Mäori, "to be Mäori" is taken for granted;
there is little need to justify one's identity, as in most other
mainstream educational settings. In Kaupapa Mäori educational
settings, Mäori language, knowledge, culture and values are
validated and legitimated by themselves - this is a given, a taken for
granted base in these schools. Mäori cultural aspirations are more
assured in these settings, particularly in light of the wider societal
context of the struggle for Mäori language and cultural survival. One
of the common faults of previous schooling interventions has been
the inadequate attention paid to this aspect of supporting the
maintenance of Mäori culture and identity. In incorporating these
elements, a strong emotional and spiritual factor is introduced to
Kaupapa Mäori settings, which locks in the commitment of Mäori to
the intervention. In particular, many adults have been convinced that
schooling might now have some relevance and consequently, Mäori
parents who were once "put off' by schooling because of their own
negative experiences have recommitted due to the emotional and
cultural pull of the Kaupapa Mäori approach.
3. The principle of incorporating culturally preferred pedagogy.
Teaching and learning settings and practices are able to closely and
effectively connect with the cultural backgrounds and life
circumstances (socioeconomic) of Mäori communities. These
teaching and learning choices are "culturally preferred." Other
pedagogy is also utilized including universal schooling methods and
some cross-cultural borrowing (e.g., Japanese pedagogy, with the
Soroban math programme, or the learning of Japanese language).
The move towards Pacific/ Asian cultures and language is a logical
development given the close cultural similarities in some aspects,
and the shared commonalties of the Austronesian group of
languages.

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 Beyond Political Literacy 37

4. The principle of mediating socioeconomic and home difficulties. The

Kaupapa (philosophy) of Kura Kaupapa Mäori is such a powerful
and all-embracing force, through its emotional ( ngakau ) and spiritual
(wairua) elements, that it commits Mäori communities to take
seriously the potential of schooling as a positive experience despite
other social and economic impediments abroad in the wider
community. It not only impacts at the ideological level and is able to
assist in mediating a societal context of unequal power relations, it
also makes schooling a priority consideration despite debilitating
social and economic circumstances. Within the collective cultural
structures and practices of whanau (extended family), some
alleviation of the impact of debilitating socioeconomic
circumstances can be obtained. Put another way, by drawing on the
social capital of the culturally collective practice, a mediation of
what might otherwise be debilitating socioeconomic circumstances
can be achieved.
5. The principle of incorporating cultural structures which emphasize
the collective rather than the individual, such as the notion of the
extended family. The extended family structure backs the ideological
support won in the previous category. It does this by providing a
collective and shared support structure to alleviate and mediate
social and economic difficulties, parenting difficulties, health
difficulties and others. Such difficulties are not located in individual
homes but in the total whanau; the whanau takes collective
responsibility to assist and intervene. While the whanau structure
implies a support network for individual members, there is also a
reciprocal obligation on individual members to invest in the whanau
group. In this way, parents are culturally contracted to back and
assist in the education of all the children in the whanau. Perhaps the
most significant aspect of whanau administration and management is
that it brings back into the schooling setting many parents who were
once extremely hostile to education given their own unhappy
schooling experiences. This is a major feature of Kura Kaupapa
Mäori schooling intervention - it has committed parents to re-invest
in schooling and education for their children.
6. The principle of a shared and collective vision/philosophy. The Kura
Kaupapa Mäori (primary schools) have a collective vision, which is
written into a formal charter entitled Te Aho Matua. This vision
provides the guidelines for excellence in Mäori, that is, what a good
Mäori education should entail. It also acknowledges Pakeha culture

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38 Graham Hingangaroa Smith

and skills required by Mäori children to participate fully and at every

level in modern New Zealand society. Te Aho Matua builds on the
Kaupapa of Te Kohanga Reo and provides the parameters for the
uniqueness that is Kura Kaupapa Mäori. Its power is in its ability to
articulate and connect with Mäori aspirations, politically, socially,
economically and culturally. A powerful vision is able to provide
impetus and direction to struggle.

This list is not definitive in that it only suggests some (six) of the key
elements which contribute to the success of these alternative schooling and
educational initiatives.

Lessons in Transformative Praxis

Underpinning the Mäori intervention elements described above are important

understandings about transformative praxis and, by extension, critical
pedagogy. The intervention strategies applied by Mäori in New Zealand are
complex and respond simultaneously to multiple formations of oppression
and exploitation. This expansive resistance approach is important in
responding to the new formations and reshaping of cultural oppression(s) and
economic exploitation(s). That is, multiply formed oppressions need to be
responded to multiply formed resistance strategies. In this sense the shape of
the "struggle" in by which Mäori are engaged, is neither singular, nor lineal,
nor instrumental.
The Kaupapa Mäori educational interventions represent the evolution of
a more sophisticated response by Mäori to freeing themselves from multiple
oppressions and exploitations. In particular, the very emergence of Kaupapa
Mäori as an intervention strategy critiques and reconstitutes the western
dominant resistance notions of conscientization, resistance and
transformative praxis in different configurations. In particular, Mäori
reconfiguration rejects the notion that each of these concepts stands
individually; or that they are necessarily to be interpreted as being a lineal
progression from conscientization to resistance to praxis. That is, one state is
not necessarily a prerequisite or contingent on the other states. Thus the
following popular representation of transformative action (based on a
predominantly western type of thinking) needs to be critically engaged.

Conscientization^

Fig.l

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 Beyond Political Literacy 39

The position implicit within the new formations of Mäori intervention,

and which may have wider significance for other indigenous populations, is
that all of the above components are important; all need to be held
simultaneously; all stand in equal relation to each other. This representation
might best be understood as a cycle:

^^iscientizaÜOT^
• r Transformative Action

Fig. 2

A further point here is that individuals and groups enter the cycle from
any position and do not necessarily (in reflecting on Mäori experience within
Kaupapa Mäori interventions) have to start at the point of conscientization.
In other words, individuals have been caught up in transformative praxis
unintentionally. For example, the case of parents taking their children to
Kohanga Reo (because it was the only early childhood option in the town)
lead to all the parents becoming conscientized about the politics of language
revitalization and becoming highly active participants in the resistance
movement. This is a significant critique of much of the writing on these
concepts that tend to portray a lineal progression through the stages of
conscientization, resistance and transformative action. Mäori experience
tends to suggest that these elements may occur in any order and indeed may
all occur simultaneously. It is important to note as well that the arrows in the
diagram go in both directions, which reinforces the idea of simultaneous
engagement with more than one element. It is also an inclusive
representation of struggle and moves beyond the hierarchical representation
implied in the lineal model. In the cycle diagram, all Mäori can be plotted
somewhere on the circle (some are standing still; some are going backwards;
others are well advanced) - the point is that every Mäori is in the struggle
whether they like it or not, whether they know it or not.
One of the most exciting developments with respect to the organic
resistance initiatives of Mäori in the 1980s and 1990s has been the
discernible shift and maturation in the way resistance activities are be
understood and practised. Now, a greater emphasis is placed on attempt

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40 Graham Hingangaroa Smith

take account of structuralist concerns (economic, ideological and power

structures) as well as culturalist responses (related to agency). Some of the
important factors which the Mäori resistance initiatives attempt to engage
with relate to economic, ideological and power dimensions that are derived
from a nexus of state-dominant Pakeha cultural interests.
Where indigenous people are in educational crises, indigenous educators
and teachers must be trained to be change agents, to develop transformation
of the undesirable circumstances. They must develop a radical pedagogy (a
teaching approach for change). Such pedagogy must also be informed by
their own cultural preferences and respond to their own critical circumstance.
This chapter is concerned to impart this message based on Mäori experience
in Aotearoa. I believe there is much to inform other indigenous contexts from
this situation, in particular the need to focus on the process of transforming,
and on the transformative outcomes - what is it? How can it be achieved? Do
indigenous people's needs and aspirations require different schooling
approaches? Who benefits? Such critical questions, which relate to the task
of teachers being change agents, must not only inform our teacher education
approaches, they must also ensure the buy-in from the communities they
purport to serve.

The Real Revolution of the 1980s

The revolution of Mäori education in the 1980s was not simply about an
innovative educational approach towards language revitalization and
intervention in educational underachievement. The revolution was also about
the development of new transformative strategies that developed both
culturalist and structuralist emphases. It was also about:

• Mäori taking proactive action to make change for themselves, that is

not waiting for Pakeha to make the changes, but doing it themselves
• Mäori developing critique of how knowledge is socially constructed
within education and schooling settings
• Mäori engaging with a critical theory engaged with the economic
conditions, scientific/technical rationality, but which was also
concerned with a transformative approach
• Mäori coming to critical understandings about theory; about its
social construction, about its usefulness when applied by Mäori in
their own interests
• Mäori recognizing the need to undo Pakeha hegemony and to
decolonize themselves

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 Beyond Political Literacy 41

• Mäori understanding that given multiple sites of oppression, there

must also be multiple sites of struggle and multiple strategies for
change. In this sense, complex colonization requires complex
responses. (See Gramsci's (1971) "War of Position" discussed by
Smith, 1997).

Finally, this chapter attempts to move beyond critical analysis to

transformative praxis. It is argued that we need to more fully understand how
change is developed and actually achieved. There is a need to move beyond
mere description of problems and issues to making sure that change does in
fact occur. The status quo for most Mäori is problematic and there is an
urgent need for change. In the words of Tuki Nepe (personal communication,
1988):
We are paddling our own canoe and we are heading in this direction [alternative
schooling]. You [Ministry of Education officials] can either get "on board" and
come with us or you can stay here and drown. We're going to go anyway - with or
without you!

This shift in focus beyond political consciousness raising to actually

taking transformative action is encapsulated in the above quote and is the
essence of the revolution which has occurred in New Zealand since the
1980s. It has been this movement beyond the ideology and rhetoric of
resistance that is an important and critical learning, not just for Mäori, but
also for other indigenous groups.

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42 Graham Hingangaroa Smith

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